Bachelor Cowboy (6 page)

As she was closing the lid on the basket, he took hold of her hand. “Are you okay? You look a little pale.”

It was the perfect excuse. “To be honest, I’ve felt better, but I’m sure I’ll be fine, once I get home.”

He released her when she looked up at him. “Something you ate?” he asked with a grin that put her even more off balance.

“Could be.”

When she reached for the picnic basket, he tried to take it from her. “Let me get that.”

“I can manage,” she said, pulling it away from him.

“If you say so. But maybe I should drive you home.”

“I’m fine!” She ducked her head and squeezed her eyes shut, ashamed at how she must have sounded. Taking a deep breath to calm herself, she tried for a smile. “Really, Dusty, I can manage. It’s not like I’m really sick or anything, just not feeling my best.”

The look of concern on his face made her wish she had kept quiet. What was wrong with her, anyway?

“Thanks for the lunch,” he said as he walked with her to the truck.

“You’re welcome. I’m glad you enjoyed it.” She shoved the picnic basket into the cab of the pickup and climbed inside, while he stood at the open door.

“Drive carefully,” he said, stepping back when she pulled the door shut and started the engine.

“I will.”

She spent the short drive home telling herself that she wasn’t disappointed that he would be leaving soon
and that she was really glad he would be. She’d be much better off when he was no longer around, making her feel things she didn’t want to feel. By the time she reached the farm, she still hadn’t completely convinced herself.

A
NOTHER LIGHT RAIN SHOWER
during the night kept them out of the fields and fidgety for another day. Standing in the kitchen, wondering what to do while Trish was spending the day with her fiancé and Aunt Aggie rested, Kate heard a pickup as it rolled up the driveway. Even in the short time he’d been working for them, she recognized the sound of Dusty’s truck, and she went to the door to see what had brought him to the farm.

“I thought I’d do a little work on my house today,” he told her as he climbed from the vehicle and stood next to it.

She stayed in the doorway with the screen door open and nodded. She’d made a mistake the day before by appearing to care if he stayed or left, and she couldn’t let that happen again.

“I could use some help,” he said, not moving from beside the truck. “I finished tearing up the steps and knocking down the railing yesterday.”

She wasn’t sure how she should answer that. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to help, it was a matter of simply spending time with him when she didn’t have a good grasp on her emotions. She wasn’t accustomed to feeling that way. Unable to think of a reply, she turned and started to step into the house.

“I’m scraping paint,” he called to her, stopping her. “Two would make it go much faster.”

She looked back at him over her shoulder. “And what makes you think I would want to help?”

“I don’t know,” he admitted. He tipped his hat back with one finger and gave her a sheepish grin. “I just hoped you might. It’s not much fun working alone.”

Hesitating, she wasn’t sure it was a good idea to go back to Dusty’s. If she went, she would have to have better control of herself, and she wasn’t completely convinced she could do that. He always seemed to take her by surprise.

“I’ll even supply the food this time,” he tempted.

She wavered and finally gave in. “Let me leave a note,” she said.

Hastily scribbling her whereabouts on a scrap of paper in the kitchen, Kate decided her best bet would be to do a better job of keeping her distance from him and not allowing him to see a knee-jerk reaction from her about anything. She’d reacted foolishly, something she wasn’t fond of doing, but had never been able to control. She sensed he had formed some strange sort of attraction for her, although she couldn’t imagine why, unless it was because she was so different. In that case, she had nothing to worry about. He would soon find someone better. Maybe they could find a comfortable way to be friends and leave it at that.

Outside again, she found him waiting in his pickup. “Hop in,” he told her as she crossed the yard.

“I’ll drive myself.”

“That’s a waste of gas,” he argued.

“Not from my point of view,” she tossed back as she got in the old truck. Backing out, she noticed his frown, but dismissed it. Dusty liked having his own way. So did
she. A good reason not to think there might be a chance they could get along for any length of time.

When she arrived again at Dusty’s, he handed her a metal paint scraper. “I already have the back of the house done. The paint is coming off like snow on a hot tea kettle. It shouldn’t take long.” He led her over to the side of the house where unpainted wood contrasted with what had not been scraped. “Nice, long strokes,” he told her, taking the hand she held the scraper in and guiding it slowly along the wood.

“I can do it,” she snapped, and she instantly regretted it. But his nearness and the feel of his hand on hers unnerved her.

“Yeah, you probably can,” he said as he stepped away from her.

Relieved to be able to breathe again, she steadied her hand and started in. They worked in silence for a while before she couldn’t take the tension between them any longer. “Is the back ready to paint?”

“I started on it first, in case it was going to be a tough job. Didn’t want anyone having to look at it until I could find the right method.”

“Would you mind if I started painting back there?”

His hand stopped in midstroke as he turned to look at her. “You want to work in the back? By yourself?”

She nodded. “You’ll be done here in no time. That’ll give us a head start on the painting.”

Laying the scraper down, he shrugged. “If that’s what you want to do. I’ll get the paint and a brush.”

While Dusty went for the supplies, Kate spied a ladder resting on the ground against the side of the house. Dragging it to the back, she leaned it against the
area ready to be painted and started up the rungs, testing it for stability with each step.

“Get down from there!” Dusty shouted from behind her.

She turned to look at him. “It’s safe. Hand me the brush and can.”

Setting them on the ground beside himself, he glared at her. “I said get down. You can do the lower half. I’ll get the top later.”

“That’s ridiculous,” she argued, holding firmly onto the ladder. She could imagine him trying to drag her down to the ground. “I’ve climbed a ladder before.”

He stalked to the base of the ladder and grabbed her ankle. “You are one stubborn woman, aren’t you? I don’t want you up there when I’m on the other side and can’t keep an eye on you.”

“I’m not a child.” She shook her foot, hoping to break his hold on her. “Let go.”

“Not on your life,” he said through gritted teeth. The stubborn set of his jaw eased, and he smiled slightly. “If you get hurt, Aggie will have to drive the truck. And you know how her knee is.”

Kate rolled her eyes at him. Unfortunately, he had a point. She didn’t expect to fall, no matter what he might think, but accidents did happen. By tomorrow they should be able to get back into the field and finish cutting the wheat there, and in another day or two, they’d be done for the year.

And any other year
. But that was something she didn’t need to think about.

Still, he was right. Aggie would have a fit if she had to drive the truck because Kate did something foolish
like lose her footing or reach too far. “Oh, all right,” she grumbled, climbing back down the ladder.

When she made it safely to the ground, he handed her the brush and paint can, and then reached for the ladder. “I’ll just take this with me so you don’t get tempted. You know where I am if you need anything.”

Glaring at his retreating back, the ladder securely in his hands, Kate pried the lid off the can, stirred the paint with a clean stick and stuck the brush in, thankful, at least, that she didn’t have to work near him anymore. She didn’t mind the painting at all. In fact, she’d rather be doing it than scraping off the old paint. Seeing the smooth cream color spread over the wood gave her a feeling of satisfaction.

She’d been working for nearly an hour, without a word from Dusty, when she heard the sound of a vehicle coming up the long lane to the house, tires crunching in the gravel. Staying where she was, she continued to paint, but she couldn’t help listening to find out who Dusty’s visitor might be.

“What brings you over this way?” she heard Dusty ask.

She recognized Tanner O’Brien’s deep voice when he answered. “I haven’t heard from you for a while, and I wondered what you were up to.”

“Just getting the place spruced up a bit,” Dusty replied.

Feeling a touch of guilt for listening in on the conversation, she decided that as soon as she finished this last area, she’d stop and say hello to her neighbor.

“It’s looking better than the last time I was here,” Tanner said. “Except I’d get some steps put in, if I were you. That porch is a mighty big step up.”

Dusty’s laugh reached around the house. “They’re on
order and supposed to be delivered in the next couple of days. I decided to go ahead and get this old paint off while I’m waiting.”

“At least you’re keeping busy.”

“Come on inside and let me show you what I plan to do in there.”

Their voices trailed off as they stepped into the house, and Kate couldn’t hear what they were saying. Several minutes later, she heard Tanner’s next statement clearly.

“I’m glad to see you’re thinking about settling down, my friend.”

“I’m getting the house ready to rent,” Dusty replied.

“Oh,” Tanner said, sounding a bit disappointed. “I guess there isn’t much reason to ask if I could talk you into coming down to the ranch and giving Shawn some pointers, then.”

“No reason why I can’t. As soon as harvest is over, that is. It should be dry enough to get back into the field tomorrow,” she heard Dusty say.

“How long do you think it will take?”

“Maybe a couple of days or so. Longer if it rains again though.”

Kate’s brushstrokes slowed. When she realized it, she began to paint more quickly.

“You know, he’s itching to team rope again,” Tanner was saying, “but there’s nobody around that he wants to do it with except you.”

Even from where she was standing, Kate could hear Dusty’s sigh. “He’d better keep looking. Don’t count on me. I can give him pointers on his roping, but I’ll be busy bull riding.”

Tanner didn’t miss a beat. “You don’t even know if the doctor will give the okay to ride again. Why don’t you go get checked out?”

“I plan to. I’ve got an appointment—”

Kate let out a scream as the first of the blinding stings hit her hand. She opened her eyes to see several wasps circling in front of her face, and she screamed again as she stumbled and fell to the ground.

Strong arms encircled her, and Kate felt a gentle touch press her wrist. “Wasps,” she whispered through her clenched teeth. “I guess I wasn’t paying attention and knocked against their nest.”

“Tanner, there’s ice in the freezer,” she heard Dusty say calmly. “Would you get it?”

“Sure. Be right back.”

Kate slowly opened her eyes to see her hand already swelling. “Aggie will kill me,” she moaned, more from causing trouble for her aunt than the pain she was feeling.

“If the stings don’t,” Dusty muttered, examining her hand with a gentleness that surprised her. He looked up at her. “You aren’t allergic, are you?”

Shaking her head, she closed her eyes to the pain. Her whole hand ached as tears started to fall.

“Don’t cry, hon, we’ll get you fixed up,” he said, his voice soothing.

“I never cry!” But the tears fell anyway.

She felt the brush of his lips in her hair and thought of moving away, but she didn’t have the control she thought she did. She knew she was in dangerous terri
tory, but it felt so good being held and comforted against his broad chest. Just for a minute.

“It hurts,” she whispered, letting herself go and crying harder. Sighing on a sob, she turned her head to the warmth of his chest, pressing her cheek to it. Just one moment to breathe in the scent, to feel the warmth of skin against her—

His skin!

Kate froze and opened her eyes. She could clearly see tanned, muscled skin, lightly dusted with golden brown hair, pressing against her cheek. She felt him slowly pull her away, and she dared to look up at him. His brown eyes had darkened as he gazed down at her, and his hand slipped up to cup the back of her head. She held her breath as his face neared hers, her eyes fluttering shut, as if they had a mind of their own. She wanted to say no, but the word wouldn’t form on her lips.

“Here’s the ice,” she heard Tanner say, and she and Dusty jerked away from each other. “I found an ice bag and a bandage to hold it on and some aspirin in the medicine cabinet.”

“Thanks,” Dusty replied in a voice that sounded as if he was choking. “Let’s move you out of this hot sun, Kate. Take it easy, though.” He helped her up and led her around to the porch, gently sitting her down on the edge of it while he knelt in front of her. “It’s going to hurt again.”

Kate nodded. Tanner took her other hand and held it, while Dusty finished filling the ice bag from the tray of ice. “Squeeze as hard as you want to,” he told her, giving her hand a comforting squeeze.

“Don’t I need a shot of whiskey and a bullet to bite?” she asked.

Tanner chuckled beside her, and Dusty looked up at her, grinning. “A bottle of whiskey might work better. Maybe then I could have kept that muleheaded obstinacy of yours in check and you wouldn’t have been around back by yourself.”

“But I got a lot of painting done.”

“And Aggie will probably have to drive tomorrow if this swelling doesn’t go down,” he reminded her.

She didn’t bother to answer, knowing he was right. She could hope that by dinnertime tomorrow she would be able to get back to hauling. But first, she’d have to manage making breakfast and dinner, and that didn’t seem very likely at the moment.

When he gently placed the ice bag on her hand, she winced, and he waited until she nodded to wrap the bandage around all of it. “You’d better keep it elevated tonight and tomorrow.”

That would be impossible. With Aunt Aggie having to drive the truck and Trish still working on basic cooking, Kate knew she had to find a way to get through it all. She couldn’t let her family down, especially when it came to the farming.

“It’ll be better in the morning,” she insisted, but noticed his eyes narrowing in anger. “I’ll keep an eye on it, though,” she added quickly.

“Sit right here and don’t move,” he ordered in a stern voice. “I’m going to clean up the paintbrush, and then if Tanner doesn’t mind following, I’ll take you home and he can bring your truck.”

“I can drive.”

By the look of his set mouth, Dusty’s patience appeared to be wearing thin. “You will not drive. For once, do what I say and don’t argue.”

She could see the laughter in Tanner’s eyes, but decided not to say a word. Dusty was on the edge of losing his temper, and she had a feeling if she pushed him on over, she wouldn’t be at all happy with the outcome.

“Stay put,” Dusty told her, and started for the side of the house where she’d been painting.

Tanner followed him. “Just the woman for you,” he said as they rounded the corner of the house. “She’d make you a mighty fine wife.”

“Not me. She’s as stubborn as a bear after a hive full of honey,” Dusty grumbled. “And more trouble than she’s worth.”

Kate gasped, surprised and hurt, and hoped no one heard her. She certainly didn’t have any designs on Dusty and especially not on marriage to him or any other man. While it was true she was stubborn, he was just as much so, if not more, and he had even admitted it. If she could have gotten to her feet without her hand hurting, she would have gone after him and told him so, but she was feeling wobbly and light-headed. Staying where she was, she nursed her wounded pride.

When Dusty returned, she avoided looking at him, fearing she might give away her feelings—feelings she wasn’t willing to admit to anyone, including herself. Once he was gone—She squeezed her eyes tight as he helped her from the porch. There were still a few days of harvest left, and she would get through it. After that, Dusty would be gone, and he could do whatever or go
anywhere he wanted. She didn’t care. Not after hearing what he really thought of her.

As he helped her to his truck, she decided then and there to make sure she never had to be alone with him again. The memory of the way he’d looked at her and the feel of his arms around her strengthened her resolve. Whatever had prompted his foolishness was no concern of hers, but she didn’t want to give him the opportunity of doing anything like it again. Whatever these strange feelings she had for him were, they would fade away as soon as he was gone. She was certain of that.

“H
ARDHEADED, STUBBORN FEMALE,
” Dusty muttered. He drove with his foot to the floorboard after he had dropped Kate off at the farm and made sure Aggie was completely aware of the situation. Aggie had assured him she could take care of the truck driving and that Kate would be well looked after. She even tried to talk Kate into going into town to have the doctor look at the stings, but Kate had waved them all away, insisting she would be fine in the morning.

Beside him in the truck, Tanner laughed. “I’ve never met a woman more perfect for you, Dusty.”

“You think that copper-haired spitfire is perfect for me? Then you don’t know me very well. Kate as a wife?” He snorted and glanced at Tanner to see an odd look on his face. Not sure what it meant, he continued. “I’d have to be crazy to even think of it.”

“You’ve had some mighty hard kicks to that head of yours,” Tanner said, looking him over closely. “You’re crazy if you don’t try to rope and tie that redhead.”

“Think again, my friend,” Dusty replied as he turned into the lane leading to his house. But he had a hard time getting the picture of Kate’s face, tears in her eyes as she’d looked up at him earlier, out of his mind. And the way she’d cuddled up to him had set him on fire.

Tanner cleared his throat. “Shawn is competing the week after next,” he said, obviously changing the subject before the conversation went south. “If you get the chance, come on down and watch.”

“I saw him in Altus last week, and he did a good job.”

“Not quite good enough, if you ask him,” Tanner said, chuckling. “And I think Jules would be happier if he’d stick to team roping or anything other than broncs, but she won’t say it. Maybe you should give a little more thought to team roping with him again. He’d like to be able to enter more than one event.”

“After being sidelined for the past six weeks, I’ll be concentrating on the bull riding.” But Dusty felt bad about not helping the boy he’d taught to team rope. “I’ll stop in to lend a hand with the team roping, whenever I can, and I’ll see if I can’t find him another partner.”

“What if you can’t ride bulls anymore?”

Dusty took his eyes off the road to stare at his friend. “That won’t happen.”

“It could.”

“No, it couldn’t.” Dusty wouldn’t even allow the thought to enter his mind. Bull riding was his life, and he wouldn’t even consider entertaining the idea that it would end anytime soon.

“What if you met someone?” Tanner asked.

“So we’re back to that again, are we? Look, Tanner, I’m not the marrying kind,” he answered. “I won’t be
trying the rodeo and wife thing again. Once was enough to learn my lesson.”

“Jules and I seem to manage it well.”

Dusty smiled at his friend’s good luck. “You don’t know how happy it makes me to know that. But there aren’t many out there like Jules. She’s one of a kind.”

“That she is,” Tanner agreed. “And now with the baby…”

Fighting the little bit of envy he felt, Dusty didn’t hear the rest of what Tanner was saying. His best friend had not only found a dream of a wife and had a baby son, but he had won the National Bronc Riding Championship a few months earlier. Tanner’s life seemed about as perfect as anything could get. But it wasn’t the life Dusty had in mind.

“I know what I’m doing,” he finally said, determined to live his life on his own terms.

“There are more important things in life than rodeo,” Tanner said. “Especially as we get older.”

Dusty understood what his friend was getting at, but Tanner’s crazy notion about Kate was dead wrong. He wasn’t interested in marrying her or anyone else. They could continue to be friends, until he was back traveling the circuit again, but beyond that, he didn’t have any plans where she was concerned. And they
were
friends, even though it wasn’t exactly what he’d had in mind the first time he’d laid eyes on her, but neither was anything serious.

“My mind is made up,” he told Tanner, as he pulled up in front of his house and killed the engine. “I’m going back to riding bulls. Nothing is going to stop me. Not Kate Clayborne or any other woman.”

In spite of his concern for her, Dusty didn’t see Kate the next day. Aggie drove the truck without complaint, but he noticed at the end of the long day that she was limping even more than usual. He didn’t even see Kate at dinner. Since Dusty was no longer working near the house, Trish had brought dinner and the evening sandwiches to the field. He hoped Kate’s hand wasn’t hurting her too much, but he wasn’t sure what was worse, that or her avoiding him because she didn’t want to see him. And he didn’t know why.

The next day, Aggie again appeared to drive the first load of wheat to the elevator. Kate arrived to take the next load, and Dusty made it a point to leave the cab to ask about her hand.

“Are you sure you’re okay to drive?” he asked at the truck window. “Is it still hurting?” He tried to take a look at it, but she kept it hidden.

She wouldn’t even look him in the eye as she fidgeted with the truck’s controls and started the engine. “I’m fine. Don’t worry about it.”

“I
am
worried about it,” he admitted. “It happened at my house. How can I not worry?”

Kate turned to face him, a frown pulling at her mouth. “Afraid I might sue?”

“Sue?” he said, his throat closing to choke him at the thought. “No, it never crossed my mind. For crying out loud, it hasn’t crossed yours, has it?”

“It might have.” Shoving the truck into gear, she drove away.

But he’d noticed the look on her face and knew it had been the pain talking.

They finished cutting the last of the wheat late that
afternoon, and he never got a chance to talk to her again. Maybe it was a good thing, he decided. He had told Tanner that Kate wasn’t the woman for him. No woman was. But he had a hard time not thinking about her.

With harvest over for the year and finding himself again at loose ends, Dusty spent the next day working diligently on his house. He worked until dark and was physically exhausted, but he felt good. His ribs didn’t bother him, even during the most strenuous tasks, and he figured maybe he’d finally healed. The headaches came and went, with no rhyme or reason, and he did his best to ignore them.

Bone weary but invigorated by the progress he’d made, he fell into bed, planning what work he’d do on his house the next day. He tried not to think of how often he’d wished Kate had been there to help him. Every time he had passed the spot where she’d been stung, his heart had felt heavy. He tried not to think of her in those late, dark hours of the night. Lying in bed, his hands folded under his head, he concentrated on getting back on the rodeo circuit, competing in the bull riding competitions and maybe a little team roping with Shawn. But it wasn’t long before his thoughts became more about bright blue eyes and a sprinkling of freckles splashed across a pert nose.

When sleep didn’t come, he wondered if he needed something besides remodeling to keep him busy. He had hoped Aggie might ask him to help with the plowing and disking of the ground that would be needed to get the fields ready for fall planting, but she hadn’t. He missed breakfasts and dinners at the Claybornes’, not only the food, but the company as well. He missed Kate and
wondered how she was getting along. Punching his pillow, he prayed for sleep and fought the images of her that drifted through his mind.